Why it works: Veal and beef are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,784 recipes. Both carry 2,6-nonadienal, which smells cucumber, green. The science ↓
Mock-turtle-soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the head
Scald the cow-calf head, split it, and remove the brains, gristles, and bones.
Blanch the head in several waters to remove slime and blood.
Place the head in a stew-pan and cover with cold water.
Boil and skim continuously until no more scum rises.
After 45 minutes, remove the head, cool, and cut into small pieces.
Peel the tongue and cut it into 1-inch cubes.
Make the stock
In a stock pot, add the broken bones and trimmings, the knuckle of veal, and shin of beef.
Boil slowly for at least 4 hours, skimming as needed, and strain for future use.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Veal + beeftop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,784 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, green).
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Flour + beeftop 25% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together10,677 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + vealtop 28% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together5,886 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour and beef barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 10,677 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cow-calf head
- Provides gelatin and body, giving the soup its rich, thick texture as it cooks.
- Veal knuckle
- Adds collagen and gelatin that enrich the stock and give it body.
- Beef shin
- Contributes collagen and meaty flavor that deepen the stock during long simmering.
- Curry powder
- Adds warm aromatic spice that gives the soup its characteristic flavor.
- Lightly-browned flour
- Thickens the soup and adds a mild toasted, nutty flavor.
The step that matters
Skimming the scum while boiling. Scum rising from the blood and proteins clouds the stock and can taste bitter or muddy if not removed. Keeping the liquid at a gentle simmer and skimming steadily produces a clear, clean-flavored broth.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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